The flash December index reading rose to 56.0 from November's 55.9 reading. Numbers above 50 on the index indicate varying rates of expansion whereas numbers below 50 indicate varying degrees of contraction.
The employment sub-index jumped to 55.7 from November's 52.4 reading, indicating a strong acceleration in employment growth in December. In fact, Markit notes that this month saw the strongest rate of job creation in survey history.
At top right is a complete breakdown of the sub-components of the index.